David Moyes could not contain himself. As the ball hit the back of the net after substitute Beto had bundled in the equaliser in the seventh minute of injury time, the Everton manager set off. Moyes may be 63 years old in a couple of months but he sprinted towards the away supporters in sheer delight as his players celebrated on the pitch.
Somehow Everton’s unbeaten record here that stretches back to 2019 is still intact. It had seemed that a goal from Pascal Gross would be enough for Brighton to claim victory after they had spurned a number of chances in the first half. But while it is one thing to plan how you are going to overcome a team managed by Moyes, it’s not quite so easy in practice.
For Fabian Hürzeler this was a bitter pill to swallow. It is now only one win in their past 11 Premier League games and hopes of another European campaign are quickly evaporating. His team left the pitch to boos, although they were mainly directed at the referee, Chris Kavanagh, for playing beyond the allotted six minutes of added time.
Moyes deployed 6ft 5in Jarrad Branthwaite at left-back as the England defender made his first start of the season after returning from a long-term injury layoff as a substitute against Leeds last weekend. Michael Keane was back from suspension to make up an intimidating-looking Everton back four alongside James Tarkowski and Jake O’Brien.
